Ex-restaurateur sentenced in Gambino case

Published 7:28 pm, Wednesday, July 31, 2013

HARTFORD -- A man who once operated a Stratford pizzeria is headed to federal prison for his role in a Gambino-run gambling operation.

U.S. District Judge Vanessa Bryant on Wednesday sentenced Domenico Manchisi, 65, of Spicebush Lane, Shelton to six months in prison, fined him $20,000 and ordered him to forfeit another $20,000 to the government.

Manchisi pleaded guilty to operating an illegal gambling business. Federal prosecutors said his role involved picking up cash from the Gambino operation in New Haven and delivering it to Dean DePreta or Richard Uva in Stamford. The FBI recorded conversations between Manchisi and Uva discussing his pickups.

DePreta has been identified by federal prosecutors as the head of Gambino operations in Southwestern Connecticut. He has pleaded guilty to charges and is awaiting sentencing. Uva is expected to plead guilty Aug. 5.

The three were among 19 reputed Gambino associates arrested following an investigation into illegal gambling in Stamford and New Haven. The operation involved street bookies as well as a gambling website. An FBI analysis determined that the operation took in $1.7 million from October, 2010 to June, 2011.

Manchisi had owned Jerry's Shakespeare Apizza on Stratford Avenue, Stratford, according to public records.